Shooting a big-budget film in New Zealand unlocked substantial production incentives, Variety said in a report from Beijing.

Under new rules introduced at the beginning of this month, called the New Zealand Screen Production Grant, feature films which spent more than $15 million in this country could receive a rebate of 20 per cent of local expenditure. Under previous rules the rebate was for 15 per cent, Variety said.

The Weinstein Company's Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon II – The Green Destiny will star Michelle Yeoh reprising her role as female warrior Yu Shu Lien. It will be directed by Yuen Woo-ping, a veteran martial arts ace who was action choreographer for the original 2000 film.

Producers seriously considered filming at the new Pinewood Iskandar Malaysia studios, but that facility was occupied until the end of the year by the TWC-produced Marco Polo television series for Netflix.